Ro Khanna renews calls for term limit for Supreme Court justices

The California Democrat had introduced a bill proposing 18-year term limits for justices

Indian American Rep. Ro Khanna, D-CA, has renewed his call for term limits for Supreme Court justices.

Khanna had introduced a bill proposing 18-year terms for Justices in August 2021.

The bill, Supreme Court Term Limits and Regular Appointments Act of 2021, was referred to the Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet in November.

Read: Will Ro Khanna run for Feinstein’s seat? (December 5, 2022)

The bill, which also proposes to limit the Senate’s “advice and consent authority in relation to the appointment” of Supreme Court justices, “requires the President to appoint a Supreme Court Justice every two years.”

The California Democrat renewed the call in a tweet on December 23:

“Why are Supreme Court justices appointed in the 1980s (sic) making decisions regarding women’s bodies in 2022? We need 18 year term limits for Supreme Court Justices. The time for many justices would be up.”

https://twitter.com/RoKhanna/status/1606322993642225665

He was referring to last June’s Supreme Court decision, in the “Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization” case, overturn federal abortion rights guaranteed 50 years ago by the landmark Roe v. Wade.

After Twitter users pointed out that the oldest servicing justice, Conservative Clarence Thomas, was nominated in 1991, Khanna quickly corrected himself. “This should be 1990s.”

In another tweet, Khanna referred to a bill he introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives to end the lifetime appoint of Supreme Court justices:

“It’s not just that this Supreme Court is ideological and extreme. It is out of town about how people are actually living in modern day America. 18 year term limits for justices. I have a bill. Let’s pass it.”

https://twitter.com/RoKhanna/status/1606368543536185355

Polls have found the proposal for term limits for Supreme Court justices to be popular among Americans.

A poll by Associated Press and NORC Center for Public Affairs Research released in July found roughly 2 in 3 Americans (67 percent) favored “term limits or a mandatory retirement age for Supreme Court justices,” according to AP.

The poll also found a sharp increase in the percentage of Americans who said they had “hardly any” confidence in the court.